Page 4 of Gentle Giant

The shouts in the street grew louder, and a blast echoed in the distance. A second later, the apartment building quaked. We relocated to the large kitchen table, sitting down to enjoy the coffee and donuts as though the world weren’t on fire. The television mounted on the nearby wall was muted, but the images flashing across the screen were terrifying. So much war. Disease. Natural disasters. Political unrest. I couldn’t blame Candy for leaving Earth, and I sincerely hoped she found happiness on New Vaxx because Earth was a real shit-show right now.

“Mm. These are delicious.” I grabbed a second donut and glanced out the window. Several plumes of smoke rose on the horizon. Technically, the city was in lockdown. No one allowed in, and no one allowed out. But if you could afford a bribe, the soldiers guarding the checkpoints would look the other way.

Candy followed my gaze. “My hovercraft is parked on the roof, and I prepaid our way out of the city in case you werewondering. We have to leave through the southern checkpoint, and we’ve got to be out of here by noon to avoid being shot down. I-I’m assuming you want to leave Seattle. I’m happy to take you anywhere you want to go.”

“Thank you. I would love to get out of the city, and I’ll totally pay you back. I’m sure the bribe cost a small fortune.” Before Candy’s arrival, I’d planned to crash in a hotel until I could find a room to rent somewhere. Thankfully, I’d received a sizable inheritance from my Aunt Shirley a few months ago, and I’d managed to keep the money hidden from gambling-prone Nick in a secret account. At least I had the funds needed to escape.

Candy waved a dismissive hand in the air. “Nah. Don’t worry about it. I doubt I’ll need any money on New Vaxx. From what I hear, the alien warriors take care of their mates’ needs completely.”

“What if you need to leave the planet?” I asked. “What if you’re not happy with the male you are assigned to and you need to escape New Vaxx?”

“You know very well that Vaxxlians mate for life, Hailey.” A dreamy look entered her eyes. “They treasure their females and treat them like queens. I’ve done a lot of research and I’m sure I’ll be fine. Plus, I plan to have Vaxxlian Matchmakers set me up with my new husband. Have you heard of VM? It’s a business run by two human sisters who are psychics who magically know the perfect warrior meant for you. They promise to match you with your soulmate.”

I took a sip of coffee, then sat back and regarded my best friend. She was an optimistic social butterfly, while I was the semi-pessimistic bookish introvert she’d decided to adopt while we were in college. I loved her for it. And God how I would miss her. I hoped she knew what she was doing. I hoped she didn’t regret her decision.

I also hoped I didn’t regret mine.

“I hope it’s true,” I said. “I hope you find your soulmate on New Vaxx.” The second I saidsoulmate, I thought of my strange dreams. Pale otherworldly eyes, sexy growls, and breathless desire.

“You deserve happiness, too,” Candy said, “and that’s why I wish you would come with me. But I know you’re stubborn and you’ve made up your mind, and even if I don’t understand your reasons for staying on Earth, you’re my best friend and I love you. I’m sure we’ll see each other again, and we can keep in touch through video comms.”

I nodded and swallowed past the burning in my throat. “Yes, we will keep in touch, and I know we’ll see each other again. This isn’t good-bye forever.” I gave her a watery smile.

“So where am I taking you, then? I highly recommend somewhere rural. Far away from any major cities.” She glanced at the television and shuddered.

“The Cascades,” I blurted. “When I was twelve, Aunt Shirley took me on vacation to an area that was once known as the North Cascades National Park, and I thought it was the most beautiful place. I could rent a cabin there for a couple of weeks. Then maybe I could relocate to a small town nearby, find a new job, and start a brand-new life.” The pull in my chest felt so strong at this moment, it was overwhelming. For a reason I couldn’t explain, the Cascades were calling to me. I kept picturing the snow-capped mountains and fir trees and gorgeous blue lakes.

Candy grinned at me. “That actually sounds perfect. We’ll get on Airbnb and find you the perfect post-breakup vacation cabin there is.” She lifted her coffee in the air. “To starting a brand-new life,” she said, and my heart broke a little, because she was talking about both of us. We were both about to start over, though her life path was taking a much more drastic turn than mine. Or so I thought.

I lifted my coffee high. “To a brand-new life.”

Chapter 3

One month later…

BRUTUS

The upper levelof the cabin was brightly illuminated, and when I stood near the porch, I could hear someone moving around inside. My pulse quickened when I detected the scent of a lone human female through an open window around the side of the house.

Perhaps she was the woman from my vision.

I breathed deeply of her scent as I considered how I might approach her. I didn’t wish to scare her, though if she were the woman from my vision, I fully intended to claim her. I would bring her back to my people’s cavern and she would live among us as my mate.

There were several rarely used cabins in my tribe’s territory, and it had been moon cycles since we’d had a human visitor on our lands—not counting the two males from the crashed vessel. Ever since I’d heard my father’s voice, I had started visiting thecabins, hoping that my female would soon arrive, praying the Great Spirit would bring her to me.

I’d observed humans from afar over the years, and I knew it was customary for visitors to knock on the front door of a house, so I walked up the stairs and pounded as hard as I could, wanting to ensure the woman heard me from the upper level.

But no matter how long I knocked, the door didn’t open. I ceased pounding on the wood, walked to the nearest window, and peered inside. I couldn’t see much, just the outlines of furniture. Perhaps the woman hadn’t heard my knocking.

I descended the porch steps and walked to the side of the house where the window had been open, only to notice it was now closed.

“Hello!” I yelled, speaking in the human tongue my father had taught me as a child. English, it was called, though he’d warned me not all humans I might encounter would speak this language. In the time of my great-grandfather, a human hunter who’d befriended my tribe had taught my people his tongue. Believing we might one day need to converse with the humans, we continued the tradition of teaching English to our next generation. As a child, I hadn’t enjoyed the lessons, but now I appreciated the ability to converse with my new mate. Assuming the woman in the cabin was my mate, and assuming she indeed spoke English.

Why had the female closed the window? Why wasn’t she coming outside to see who was calling out to her? As I stared at the window, all the lights in the upper level suddenly went off, plunging the cabin into complete darkness.

Weird. It was as though she were trying to hide from me.

Was she afraid of me because I was an unexpected stranger? Or had she glimpsed me from a window? If she’d seen me, I supposed I could understand her impulse to hide. Most humans didn’t believe in my kind, or so the humans we occasionally metin the forest claimed. That was, before we erased their memories of the encounter.

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